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Laramie Movie Scope: Knocked Up

A bawdy, funny, smart comedy

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by Robert Roten, Film Critic
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June 5, 2007 -- If it was easy to make sexy comedies as good as “The 40 Year Old Virgin” and “Knocked Up,” everyone would be doing it, but no one besides Judd Apatow has, at least not since the hilarious 1998 Farrelly Brothers film, “There's Something About Mary.” Judd Apatow is a rare talent to make those two films back to back in just the last couple of years. It is not easy to walk that tightrope between clever, witty, insightful humor and bawdy farce, but Apatow seems to walk it with ease. Making a good comedy is probably harder than anything else in movies or theater, making two great comedies like this, back to back, is a sign of amazing talent. I am greatly impressed, and look forward to Mr. Apatow's next project with great anticipation.

The premise of “Knocked Up” is not all that unusual, and the basic story idea is quite conventional. What sets this film apart is the skilled writing and direction by Apatow and fine performances by all the actors, including Seth Rogen of “You, Me and Dupree” as slacker Ben Stone, and Katherine Heigl of “Grey's Anatomy” TV series, who plays the woman he accidentally impregnates during a one-night stand, Alison Scott. Alison is an entertainment reporter on television. They meet at a night club as Alison is celebrating a big promotion at work. After a few drinks too many, they have sex and Alison becomes pregnant. Although Ben is clearly out of her league, she thinks that he ought to be a part of her baby's life. Ben, an illegal alien from Canada, who has never held down a job, lives in a run-down house with his slacker friends, Jason (Jason Segel of “Slackers”), Jay (Jay Baruchel of “Million Dollar Baby”), Jonah (Jonah Hill of “Accepted”) and Martin (Martin Starr of “Kicking and Screaming”). Their idea of a good time is to get stoned.

Ben makes an attempt to lend emotional support to Alison and to be a good father. It is difficult for him to change his ways on short notice, however, and his progress toward becoming a better man is sporadic at best. Alison is also having a difficult time adjusting to being pregnant. Raging hormones, morning sickness and worries about work are all making her a little crazy. She also worries, for good reason, that Ben is never going to grow up to become a responsible adult. You would not expect Ben and Alison to get along very well because they are so different, and their relationship is rocky. Strangely enough, however, Ben does get along well with Alison's brother-in-law, Pete (Paul Rudd of “The Ex”) who is married to Alison's sister, Debbie (Leslie Mann of “The 40-Year-Old Virgin”). The two become friends.

The story is a conventional one in that Alison and Ben try to create a relationship and that Ben tries to earn the Alison's love by becoming a better man. In that regard, it is a little like “Groundhog Day.” That makes this a very traditional love story. What is not traditional, however is the level of profanity and the frank discussion of sex in this film. This is a very bawdy film, but it is much more cleverly written that most sex comedies. Most sex comedies are aimed at adolescents. This one is aimed at adults. It deals frankly not only with sex, but of the very common fear of responsibility and heartache. In this film, the characters say aloud what most people think, but dare not say. Most sex comedies are written from a purely male point of view. In this film, both sexes are well represented. Neither males nor females are perfect. All the characters are flawed, some much more than others, but all are brimming with humanity. Like all good comedies, the humor arises not so much from pratfalls, embarrassing situations and stupid actions, but it comes from the interactions of the characters so well-established earlier in the story. This film rates a B+.

Click here for links to places to buy or rent this movie in video and/or DVD format, or to buy the soundtrack, posters, books, even used videos, games, electronics and lots of other stuff. I suggest you shop at least two of these places before buying anything. Prices seem to vary continuously. For more information on this film, click on this link to The Internet Movie Database. Type in the name of the movie in the search box and press enter. You will be able to find background information on the film, the actors, and links to much more information.

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Copyright © 2007 Robert Roten. All rights reserved.
Reproduced with the permission of the copyright holder.
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Robert Roten can be reached via e-mail at my last name at lariat dot org. [Mailer button: image of letter and envelope]

(If you e-mail me with a question about this or any other movie or review, please mention the name of the movie you are asking the question about, otherwise I may have no way of knowing which film you are referring to)